Paul Henare's youthful Tall Blacks have stunned hosts Lebanon to win their second group game at the Fiba Asia Cup in Beirut.

The New Zealanders advanced to 2-0 in Group C with an 86-82 upset over Lebanon that silenced a vocal home crowd and left the Kiwi youngsters in with a good shot of a top finish in their pool and an easier quarterfinal matchup later in the tournament.

Reuben Te Rangi led the Tall Blacks to a surprise win over Lebanon, silencing a vocal home crowd. FIBA photo

The Tall Blacks had been expected to find the experienced host side too tough on their home court, but instead came out and produced a measured and heady performance to secure the most notable result of the tournament thus far.

Henare has given all his most experienced players this campaign off and gone with a young side – average age 23 – to garner experience and build depth. It's hard to fault that policy with what we've seen so far from his group, including five debutants at this level.